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Next Meeting March 20,2007 8:00 pm McCullough Planetarium, New Castle

Messier Marathon with Greg Lee

Volume 52, No. 3 March, 2007 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE – Hank Bouchelle

Folks: I am sorry that not everyone got the word that the February meeting was cancelled. The MCAO parking lot was icy, and the grounds would have been too treacherous to

risk bringing folks out. The bright side of this is, thanks to Emil Volcheck’s time and effort, we have almost in place a way to get in touch with our members should this kind of thing happen again. You will note it as an agenda item for the March Board of Directors meeting. Now, for the good stuff: Greg Lee, our What’s Up? guru will be hosting a talk on the early spring sky, featuring Messier objects. (Some of you may be participating in a “Messier Marathon,” and this would be a good primer. NOTE that the meeting will be held at the Colonial School District’s Planetarium, 20 Chase Avenue, in New Castle. A map appears elsewhere in this issue of the Focus. The best way to enter the building is to go all the way around to the back. A gate and a large stop sign mark the planetarium entrance, and you can park mere feet from the door.

The DAS 50th Anniversary is taking shape. I would like to express publicly and in a heartfelt way my appreciation to the folks who have assisted with the planning, especially Emil Volcheck. You will be impressed by their efforts. And, by the way, we are looking for photographs from past DAS events to show. Should you have some in your possession, please contact Lee Kaser at kaserlo@msn.com

And if you have nominees for the Astronomer of the Year Award, given at the dinner meeting, contact Gus Swartout at David.A.Swartout-1@invista.com

And please remember that all members are cordially invited to the DAS Board of Director’s meeting, especially if there is an agenda item about which you

would like to have input. We meet at 7:00, before the regular meeting. Please come!

As a final note and piece of good news our own Max Peterson, DAS PowerPoint Adviser and Election Chair, has been accepted at the State University of New York - Stoneybrook, where he will major in astronomy. Please extend to Max your congratulations and good wishes! Way to go, Max!!

PEEK-A-BOO ECLIPSE OBSERVING – Greg Lee DAS hosted a public eclipse observing evening at Fox Point Park on March 3. In spite of the discouraging forecast about 15 members of the public wandered in and out during the event and about 6 of those stuck it out the whole time. DASers Lynn King, Wayne King, and Greg Lee fielded lots of questions between brief glimpses of a faint pinkish-orange moon, quick peeks at Saturn, and hurried looks at Orion as the holes in the clouds drifted by. Hopefully, the weather will be better for the next lunar eclipse on August 28.

Election Committee Report – Max Peterson

Spring Election – Board Members Elected at Large

The current slate of candidates for the offices

(three in number) of Board Member Elected at Large currently stands as:

Dr. William Hanagan Dr. David Swartout Dr. Emil Volcheck

Additional nominations may be supplied to Max Peterson at 836-4618 or obstacle02@gmail.com by April 1, or submitted from the floor at the April DAS meeting.

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The 7th Annual Mid-Atlantic Mirror Making Seminar Some views from this years Mirror Making Seminar courtesy of Jerry Truitt and P.J. Riley.

Board of Directors’ Meeting Agenda– Hank Bouchelle (More than we can accomplish in one meeting, but important items, all)

Review of Minutes Treasurer’s Report – Bob Mentzer And the 50th Celebration And budgeting Focus – Marc Hutton Library Education Programs Sawin Observatory Tom Sidowski Other expenses? Means to contact members Emil Volcheck Preparations for April and May meetings Funding – Bob Mentzer In general – Emil Volcheck Materials/showpiece/set pieces Speakers, April meeting – Greg Lee Status of DAS Banner - Bob Mentzer Menu and favors, May meeting – Glenn Bentley Brochure, May meeting – Mary Lou Ponsell Refreshments, April and May meetings – Lynn King Others Scheduling for close-up after meetings Spring elections Elections Committee Chair – Max Peterson Chartered Awards Committee report Gus Swartout Refreshment Host DAS Post Office box

Messier Marathon - Gus Swartout It’s time for March madness astronomy style. We are going to hold a Messier Marathon March 24th 7:00pm with a rain date on the 25th. The marathon is a term describing the attempt to view as many Messier objects as possible in one night. The list was first compiled by the French astronomer Charles Messier (1730-1817) who created it so he would not confuse the objects for comets

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after he had determined that objects on the list were not comets. He became very famous in the French court for his comet hunting but toda y he is known for the object list he started. His assistants added additional items so that today we have a total of 109. Many of these spectacular objects can be viewed with a telescope or binoculars on any night. There is, however. a brief time in late March when we can view most every object starting at dusk and continuing to dawn; this is what we trying to accomplish with the marathon. The only rule to follow is no mechanical or computer assistance can be used. We use only our charts and skills to find the objects. Please don’t feel overwhelmed if you don’t know the night sky that well. I certainly don’t, but with the help of Harvard Pennington’s book The Year Round Messier Marathon I was able to find 35 at last year’s event. Try and make this fun event even if you can only stay for a couple hours. Bring a scope or binoculars I’ll have some charts and books for you to use. There will also be hot chocolate, coffee and hot dogs for you to enjoy. Our tentative location is the parking lot at Bomba y Hook National Wildlife Refuge just south of Smyrna exit 114 on route 1. Follow the road signs to the Visitor Center at 2591 Whitehall Neck Road. http://bombayhook.fws.gov. Please E-mail me for the latest update david.a.swartout-1@invista.com.

DAS 50th Anniversary Commemoration – Lee Kaser

You know that DAS is celebrating its 50th year, and several of us are working on projects

for the April and May meetings. I am trying to find interesting items from the past, the older the better, and if you have a file or

collection of papers, pictures, or other items related to your membership in DAS, please

contact me at kaserlo@msn.com or call me at 302-995-6251 and we can talk about your items.

Some of our most senior members have already contributed their files, but I would like to have more, so please help me to prepare a good display. Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

STAR PARTIES AT MT. CUBA – Tom Sidowski

The schedule for DAS star parties at Mt. Cuba for the first part of 2007 are as follows:

Day Date Time Saturday March 24 8:00 pm

Friday April 20th 8:00 pm

NEW MEMBERS THIS MONTH – WELCOME Linda Knox Wilmington DE Gene Pisasale West Grove PA LOANER TELESCOPES – Emil Volcheck Spring's mild weather months will be a good time to get out and try your hand with a scope. So, if you are new to the club and/or do not have a scope, you can get the loan of either: 1) a Celestron 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain or 2) an Orion 6" Dobsonian reflector The loan is for at least a month (depends on how long the waiting list is). To get on that list, promptly, contact Emil Volcheck, 610-793-5156 or 302-654-6407. DAS Meeting Topic Schedule, 2006-2007 April 17 DAS Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration

With former officers, guest speakers, general good times!

May 15 Dinner Meeting at The Terrace at Greenhill

Speaker: Sheri Klug, Arizona State University

June 19 Astronomical Equipment Show & Tell With Marc Hutton and others

MCAO PUBLIC NIGHTS – Emil Volcheck

The Mt. Cuba

Observatory Public Nights continue year round! In addition to learning about many aspects of the heavens, you'll have a chance to visit and view our all-digital full-dome planetarium! You can pick up a schedule when you next come to a meeting - or get the latest updated version off the website at: http://mountcuba.org. Library News– Glenn Bentley Sarah Baird’s father, Robert, has generously contributed two books to the DAS Library. They are: Full Moon, a high quality coffee table book of the photography of the Apollo missions to the moon and Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution by Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Donald Goldsmith. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Robert for his contribution. I invite the membership to drop by the library at the end of the clubs meetings to check out these and the other materials.

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DAS Astrophotography Special Interest Group (AP SIG) – Bill Hanagan

The DAS Astrophotography Special Interest Group meets on Friday nights at 7:30 PM every other month at Mt. Cuba regardless of weather. The SIG also meets for photo shoots scheduled on 1-2 day notice to synchronize with the weather.

The monthly meetings are informal and typically include the presentation of astrophotos taken by the members along with an extended question and answer period. Objects commonly photographed include constellations, auroras, lunar eclipses, and planetary photos, as well as a wide variety of deep-sky objects such as nebulae, galaxies, star clusters, etc. The topics discussed cover the entire gamut of astrophotography, from how to get started with a minimum of equipment, to polar aligning your telescope, all of the way to the fine points of using auto-guiders and post-processing digital images.

If you are interested in joining the AP SIG, just email your name, address, and phone number to me at hanaganw@comcast.net. SAWIN OBSERVATORY REMINDER – Tom Sidowski

DAS members who are interested in becoming users of the Sawin Observatory and/or the Big Red DOB, should contact me at 302-239-1844 to arrange for some hands-on training in using the facility. DAS AMATEUR TELESCOPE MAKING SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP (ATM SIG) – Bill Hanagan

The DAS Amateur Telescope Making Special Interest Group meets on evenings and weekends according to the availability of the members and the particular projects that are underway. The general range of activities of the ATM SIG includes all manners of telescope making, mirror making, and the making of accessories for telescopes and observing.

Anyone interested in joining us should email their name, address, and phone number to me at hanaganw@comcast.net.

DAS FORUM/E-MAIL SITE ON YAHOO –Don Shedrick

This is a restricted e-mail service for use by DAS members for DAS purposes. To use this site, go to http://groups.yahoo.com ; search for Delaware astronomical society; and click on the link that comes up. To join, you must have a Yahoo ID and password; if you don’t, you can register at this time by following Yahoo’s instructions. You will then be allowed to “Join the group” upon clicking in that box. You must then register for the DAS group and add your profile by clicking on “add new profile” and completing the form. When adding or editing your profile, you will need to

enter your actual name in the "Real Name" box so you can be identified as a DAS member so Don Shedrick can approve your application to join the DAS group, and everyone will know to whom they are communicating. Finally, specify your desired e-mail address for delivery of messages. Note you may choose to not have your name and email address displayed to anyone other than DAS members who are members of the Yahoo DAS email group. For more detailed instructions, go to the DAS web site under DAS Resource Links. LEARNING AID – Emil Volcheck The Mt. Cuba Observatory offers an aid to learning the sky. For new folks and not-so-new who want something easy to carry around, we have the "Night Sky" planisphere, at a price of $3 each. This is David Chandler's design that provides much better constellation forms than most other such designs, to make finding them easier! Makes a nice gift, too! MEMBERSHIP EXPIRATION NOTICES :

If the mailing label on the envelope containing your FOCUS is marked with Red Marker, your membership is expiring or has expired. To continue to receive the Focus, Sky and Telescope, and Reflector, send the renewal form below with your check to:

DAS, c/o Robert Mentzer 605 River Road Wilmington, DE 19809

Or give it to Bob at a meeting. Thank you.

Call any of us with your concerns! DAS CONTACTS Membership: Any of the following: President: Hank Bouchelle-------------------- 302-429-4013 Vice President: John Case ------------------- 302-836-4888 Secretary: Lynn King ------------------------- 302-764-8816 Treasurer: Bob Mentzer---------------------- 302-764-1926 DAS/MCAO Advisor: Emil Volcheck----- 610-793-5156 Education Chair: Bob Karcha ------------ 302-999-9509 Messier Club: Lynn King -------------------- 302-764-8816 Observing: Greg Lee --------------------- --- 302-762-5358 Youth Coordinator: Sarah Baird ---------- 302-292-8950 Archivist: Rene Van Caneghem ---------- 410-392-3718 Board Members at-large: ATM and AP SIGs: Bill Hanagan --------- 302-239-0949 Chairman, Observatory Committee and DAS Monthly Star Parties: Tom Sidowski ----------------------- 302-239-1844 By-Laws: Henry Bouchelle ---------------- 302-983-7830 Light Pollution Strategist; Greg Weaver 302-239-1338 Library Chair: Glenn Bentley -------------- 610-869-0706 Ad Hoc Star Parties: Sheila Vincent - --- 302-322-4739 Elections Comm. Chair:Costas Krikelis 302-478-9099 Awards Comm. Chair – David Swartout 302-836-4618 DAS PowerPoint Adviser–Max Peterson 302-369-6982 MCAO Web Page: www.mountcuba.org DAS Web Page: www.delastro.org Focus Editor: Marc Hutton Phone 302-351-3415 E-mail Huttonm@comcast.net

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If you have questions, call any of the member representatives listed above. Otherwise, just check the appropriate boxes and complete this form. Cut it off and send it with your check to Bob Mentzer at his address given above under the membership expiration notices section. The magazine prices are group rates to DAS members. Thanks, and welcome to the DAS if you’re just joining us for the first time. New Member Senior/Family Membership $20.00 Renewal Junior membership (16/under) $10.00 Sky and Telescope Magazine $33.00 Astronomy Magazine $34.00 NAME____________________________________ STREET ADDRESS__________________________ Total Submitted ------ CITY________________________STATE________ZIP________ TELEPHONE_________________ E-MAIL ADDRESS (optional)_________________________________________________________

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ASTROPHOTOGRAPH OF THE MONTH – Wayne King

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